The median wage of payroll workers in construction was $61,370 in 2025, with the top 25% earning at least $83,480. In comparison, the U.S. median annual wage was $50,980, while workers in the top quartile (the highest paid 25%) earned at least $80,520. These estimates come from the latest release of the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) and do not include premium pay (stock and year-end bonuses, overtime pay, weekend premium pay, etc.).
The OEWS publishes wage data for nearly 400 occupations in construction. Of these, only 46 are construction trades. The remaining workers are in finance, sales, administration, and other off-site activities.
In 2025, the highest-paid occupation in construction was Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Half of CEOs earned more than $198,000 in straight-time wages, and the top 25% earned over $312,000. CEOs in construction also had the widest pay scale spread in the industry, measured as the percentage difference between pay at the bottom and top quartiles. The highest-paid 25% of CEOs earned more than 2.6 times as much as those in the lowest-paid quartile. This wide scale likely reflects a broader range of responsibilities and differences in operational scope.
Lawyers working in construction ranked second, with a median annual wage of about $190,000. Lawyers in the top quartile earned at least $242,000, or 1.9 times more than lawyers in the lowest-paid quartile. This is also a relatively wide pay scale for the industry, reflecting differences in responsibilities and diverse opportunities for career advancement among lawyers in construction.
Of the twenty-five highest-paid occupations in construction, sixteen were managerial roles. The highest-paid managers in the industry were architectural and engineering managers, with half earning more than $163,290 and the top 25% earning over $201,300 annually. Architectural and engineering managers also stand out for having a narrower salary range. Only computer and information systems (CIS) managers and human resources (HR) managers had similarly narrow pay ranges among construction managers.
Among construction trades, elevator installers and repairers remained at the top of the median-wage list, with half earning over $113,710 a year and the highest 25% making at least $136,320. This is the only construction trade that made the industry’s overall top 20 highest-paid occupations list.
First-line supervisors of construction trades are next on the trade list with a median wage of $80,000, and the top 25% earning at least $101,220.
In general, construction trades that require more years of formal education tend to offer higher annual wages. The median wage of construction and building inspectors was $74,460, and the top quartile was $95,290. This is also a trade with a relatively wider pay scale, with the top 25% earning at least 66% more than the bottom quartile, potentially reflecting greater variance in educational attainment, professional responsibilities, and expertise of building inspectors.
Carpenters are one of the most prevalent skilled trades in the construction industry. The occupation typically requires less formal education than many other professions, yet carpenters working in construction still earn wages well above the national median for all occupations. In 2025, half of carpenters earned more than $60,950 annually, while the top 25% made at least $77,390.
Plumbers and electricians, trades that typically require specialized training and licensing, had even higher annual wages. The median wage of plumbers in construction was $63,270, with the top quartile making over $83,360. Electricians’ wages are similarly high.
Terrazzo workers and pile-driver operators, fourth and fifth on the highest-paid trade list, registered especially wide wage ranges. The top 25% of pile-drivers earned at least $124,630, more than 80% above the earnings of the bottom quartile. This broad pay scale presumably reflects a greater variety of opportunities and geographic locations (including offshore rigs), as well as differences in technical expertise and training. Some pile-driving equipment comes with computerized controls and requires additional knowledge of electronics.
In contrast, solar photovoltaic installers, a relatively new construction trade, had a much narrower pay scale. The difference between the annual pay of the top 25 percent ($83,570) and the bottom quartile ($56,900) was 42%, likely reflecting less variation in expertise, training, and geographic prevalence.
Typically, construction trades that require less skill not only offer lower wages but also have less variation. Apprentice workers (helpers of painters, plumbers, electricians, roofers, carpenters, and other construction trades) illustrate this point. These are the six lowest-paid construction occupations that simultaneously show the narrowest variation. For example, the highest-paid quartile of carpenters’ helpers made at least $57,140 a year, while the bottom quartile earned at most $43,860, a 34% difference.
